As usual, the chicken process would not be possible without the help of neighbors and friends, so THANKS! to all those that helped this year!
This was not the most successful batch due to some pretty horrible weather conditions when the chicks were small, but these were the largest birds we’ve ever raised. The average weight was 6.1lbs and the mean weight was 6.5lbs. We had two that weighed in at 7.75lbs and several that were 7lbs or larger. The ration was a bit different this year, with oats being substituted for wheat, but we’re not sure whether to attribute the large sizes to the ration or the genetics. Some of the genetics were most certainly different this year with several of the birds having a band of dark feathers along the tops of their wings and others having some dark feathers on their heads. This is the first batch that we’ve done start to finish at our farm and the forage available to them may have had something to do with it as well. It will be interesting to see how the next batch turns out!